A belt and pulley system typically includes a belt and at least two pulleys, wherein each pulley is rotatable about an associated rotational axis. The belt is engaged with both pulleys, thereby transferring rotational power from one pulley to the other. For example, in an automotive application, rotational power from the crankshaft may be transferred to various systems, such as the power steering system, the alternator and the air conditioning compressor, by way of a belt and pulley system.
Misalignment of pulleys in a belt and pulley system has been known to result in increased system noise, excessive belt wear, unnecessary loads on the pulleys, and unintentional displacement of the belt during operation. Pulley misalignment occurs when one or more pulleys in the belt and pulley system is axially and/or angularly displaced from the other pulleys in the system. In the automotive application, misalignment occurs when one or more pulleys is axially and/or angularly displaced from the pulley associated with the crankshaft. Thus, the crankshaft pulley is typically used as the primary reference point in alignment of other pulleys in the belt and pulley system, for example with a laser beam alignment system. Using the crankshaft as a primary reference point is not always possible, however, because obstructions may block the path of the alignment beam. The current invention overcomes this problem by modifying the location of the source of the alignment beam of a pulley alignment system to facilitate the use of the system for the alignment of pulleys that would otherwise pose a problem due to obstruction of the alignment beam path. The current invention also allows for the use of an adaptor with the pulley alignment system to facilitate the system's use with pulleys of various diameters (e.g., the alternator pulley, which is typically very small compared to a crankshaft pulley) that would otherwise be incompatible with the components of the unmodified pulley alignment system.
Accordingly, those skilled in the art continue to seek techniques for quickly and accurately gauging of the alignment of the pulleys in a belt and pulley system.